Off to Rio

The Holy Father will be present in Rio de Janeiro for the celebration of the XXVIII World Youth Day which will take place during the week of July 22-28 of this year.  The itinerary for the Papal voyage was published this morning.

Apostolic Voyage of His Holiness, Pope Francis

to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Monday, July 22, 2013

The Holy Father will depart from the Ciampino airport in Rome at 8:45am local time aboard an Alitalia A330 jet, accompanied by His Eminence, Stanislaw Cardinal Rylko, President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, other members of the Curial staff, and various members of the Vatican Press Office, including accredited journalists.  The Pope will travel 9,201 km (total flying time is estimated at 12 hours and 30 minutes) in the air, and will arrive in Rio shortly before 4:00pm local time that day.

At 4:00pm, there will be and Welcoming Ceremony at the Galeão/Antonio Carlos Jobim International Airport in Rio de Janeiro, and then the Holy Father will travel to the Guanabara Palace where another welcoming ceremony will take place in the palace gardens.  The Holy Father will speak publicly while he is at the Palace, and then will visit privately with the President of the Republic of Brazil in the Palace before retiring for the night at the Residence of the Sumaré.

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

The Holy Father will depart (at 8:15am) by helecopter and travel to the Sanctuary of Our Lady of the Conception at Aparecida, a distance of 200 km, arriving at 9:30 that morning.  At 10:00am, His Holiness will spend some time in prayer before the Icon of the Blessed Virgin in the Chapel of the twelve Apostles, and at 10:30, he will preside at the celebration of the Mass inside the Basilica of Our Lady of the Conception.

After the Mass, the Holy Father will have lunch along with the members of the Papal party, the Bishops and the Seminarians from the Seminario Bon Jesús which is located in Aparecida.  At 4:10pm that day, the Holy Father will depart by helecopter from the Sanctuary airport and return to Rio de Janeiro.  Arrival at the Santos Dumont airport is scheduled for 5:25pm.

At 6:30pm, the Holy Father will visit the Saint Francis of Assisi Hospital of Providence in Rio de Janeiro and will speak publicly with patients and caregivers there.

Thursday, July 25, 2013

 At 7:30am, the Holy Father will celebrate a private Mass in the Residence of the Sumaré..  At 9:45am, he will visit the City Palace where he will receive the keys of the city of Rio de Janeiro and will bless the olympic flags.  At 11:00am, His Holiness will visit with the residents of the Varginha community (Mangunhos), and will share a word of greeting with them.  At 6:00pm, he will participate in the Youth Welcome Festival which will take place at the Copacabana Waterfront.  There, he will greet the young people and will speak with them about the theme of the XXVIII World Youth Day: Go make disciples of all nations (Mt 28:19).

Friday, July 26, 2013

At 7:30am, the Holy Father will celebrate a private Mass in the Residence of the Sumaré.  At 10:00am, he will visit the Park of the Quinta da Boa Vista where he will hear the confessions of some young pilgrims who are participating in the XVIII World Youth Day.  At 11:30 that morning, the Pope will meet briefly with some imprisoned youth at the Archepiscopal Palace of Saint Joachim (the residence of the Archbishop of Rio de Janeiro), and at noon, he will lead the prayer of the Angelus from the central balcony of the Archbishop's Palace before addressing the youth who will be gathered outside.

At 12:15pm, the Holy Father will greet the local organizers of the World Youth Day celebrations inside the Archbishop's Palace, and then will dine with some of the youth in the Salon rotunda of the Archbishop's Palace.

At 6:00pm on that day, the Pope will participate in the Via Crucis, the Way of the Cross which will take place along the Copacabana Waterfront in Rio de Janeiro.  At the conclusion of the Via Crucis, the Holy Father will address the youth before retiring for the evening.

Saturday, July 27, 2013

At 9:00am the Pope will preside at the celebration of Mass, accompanied by other Bishops who will be in attendance for the World Youth Day festivities, as well as priests, religious and seminarians, in the Cathedral of Saint Sebastian.

At 11:30 that morning, the Holy Father will meet with members of the Executive Class of the Municipal Theatre of Rio de Janeiro, and at 1:30pm, he will share a meal with the Brazilian Cardinals, the President of the Bishops' Conference of Brazil, other Bishops from the region around Rio and members of the papal party in the Grand Refectory of the Central Study at the Sumaré.

In the evening, beginning at 7:30pm, His Holiness will attend the Prayer Vigil with the youth at Guaratiba.  He will also address the young people during the Vigil.

Sunday, July 28, 2013

At 10:00am, the Holy Father will preside at the closing Mass of the XXVIIII World Youth Day on the campus at Guaratiba.  As is his custom, he will speak with the youth during the homily, and then will lead the prayer of the Angelus at the conclusion of the liturgy.

At 2:00pm, he will share lunch with other members of the papal party, and at 4:00pm, His Holiness will meet with members of the coordinating committee of CELAM, the Latin American Episcopal Conference in the central study of the Sumaré.  At the conclusion of this encounter, the Holy Father will depart from the Sumaré (anticipated time for this departure is 4:40pm), and then will travel to central Rio where he will meet briefly with the World Youth Day volunteers to thank them for their service.

From central Rio, the Holy Father will then travel to the Galeão/Antonio Carlos Jobim International Airport where there will be a brief departure ceremony before he boards the plane for his return flight to Rome.  The anticipated departure from the Rio airport is scheduled for 7:00pm local time, and and the anticipated arrival at the Campino airport in Rome is set for Monday, July 29 at 11:30am.